May 25, 2023

There was a time when farmers in middle America, at the first sign of a blizzard, would run a rope from their house out to the barn. As writer and teacher, Parker Palmer tells it: these farmers “all knew stories of people who had wandered off and been frozen to death, having lost sight of home in a whiteout while still in their own backyards.” You and I live in a blizzard of another kind. The winds of injustice, ecological ruin, partisan vitriol, gun-violence, religious malpractice, rampant consumerism, and war batter our souls. You know, as well as I, how we can easily wander off into this madness and never make it home. We read headlines of people who have lost their bearings, we know in ourselves how overwhelming it is to be separated from our truest and most whole self—that person God has made us to be.

We live divided lives that manifest in so many ways: refusal to invest ourselves in our work or community; remaining in settings or relationships that kill our spirit; hiding beliefs to avoid challenge, conflict, or change; concealing our identities for fear of being shunned, criticized, or attacked. Living a divided life only increases the swirl of the blizzard of our lives. We need a rope to hold onto, so that we can make it back home.

This coming program year we will be launching Faith Circles. These small groups, rooted in the sharing of life and faith together, are places that we can tie a rope from the back door to the barn, so that we can find our way back home. As was shared this past Sunday by Jeff Neal, a leader of this effort: Faith Circles are small groups of about 8 to 10 people, that will meet a couple of times per month and give us the opportunity to form deep, lasting relationships with each other that are neither invasive, nor evasive, but invite us to stay centered in God and what the great Christian writer, Thomas Merton called our “true self.”

Faith Circles are a safe space where we can be present to each other and support each other in the discovery of God’s presence in our lives and our deep desire for meaning and wholeness. 

Faith Circles are welcoming, trustworthy places where we can open up to each other, share our hopes and our fears, and explore our faith and doubts in meaningful, transformative ways – where we can make true that wonderful statement of Jesus: “where two or three are gathered in my name, I am there among them.”

In this life, you and I need trustworthy relationships and tenacious communities to support and encourage the journey of faith, which is a journey towards the wholeness we find in God’s Love. I know that not everyone will be drawn to such small groups; and, I know how desperately we need spaces and places in our lives that are outside our families and most intimate friends, where we can reflect, discover, question, and grow in new and life-giving ways. My deep hope is that Faith Circles will offer such a safe space where we discover Christ with us and renewed purpose and meaning for our living.

If you are interested in joining a Faith Circle, or would simply like to know more about them, please come to the Forum in Hadley Hall after the 10:00 am Eucharist on Sunday, June 18th. Or, reach out to me directly at nmyers@3crowns.org.

See you this Pentecost Sunday,

Rev. Nick

We are seeking an Office Administrator and Financial Administrator here at Epiphany. This work is able to be full-time or part-time depending upon the candidates. Please share these opportunities with any potential candidates and contact Rev. Nick for more information or conversation. Often, we engage the best candidates through word of mouth and we ask for your help in finding wonderful people to join our life together and a great staff team. See the position descriptions at https://3crowns.org/join-our-team. 

I am grateful to have Kristina DeFrancesco join us at Epiphany during this time of transition as we seek a new Office Administrator. Kristina worked with us doing temp administrative support during our previous search. Kristina will work remotely and help us in producing worship booklets, our weekly 3Crowns Newsletter, and managing the office@3crowns email. Please note that during this time of transition, our office will be minimally staff during the week and we, together as a staff, will do our best to respond to phone calls in a timely manner.

This Sunday, we welcome back Dr. Brian Litzenberger to our final Faith Forum in Hadley Hall. During the season of Eastertide, we've been exploring the seeds of possibility and wholeness as we discern God’s voice in our own lives and life together. Reflecting upon the post-Resurrection stories in the New Testament, Dr. Brian and Rev. Nick will invite us to explore, through dialogue and teaching, where God is calling us as a community. 

Every Thursday at 9:00 pm, all are invited to close your day with the beautiful service of Compline. Join friends via Zoom for this simple, 10-minute service of prayers and a Psalm, found on page 127 in The Book of Common Prayer. Please note that, while we are discontinuing the weekly Compline reminder emails, you are always welcome to join us using the Zoom link found in the 3 Crowns calendar below. 

Recently I was talking to the daughter of a beloved parishioner who died of ALS. She reminded me that it had been 18 years since he had passed. I won’t bore you with tired aphorisms about time flying, but man, did that surprise me. It was only a few years later that we found the Tri-State Trek and started to raise money to combat ALS. So, we’ve been doing this a long time now.

Through that long stretch, despite the tremendous support we’ve received from the parish, and the many thousands of dollars we have raised, we’ve continued to have to report that ALS remains a horrible disease stubbornly resistant to cures and treatments. But we are happy to report that this year is different. ALS-Therapy Development Institute has announced a new drug, Tofersen, has successfully completed FDA approval and significantly slows the decline of respiratory function and strength and improves quality of life. More clinical trials are underway, so it seems a pipeline of hope is on the way.

But no reason for complacency! That’s why your favorite cycling group, Team Epiphany, is at it again. We’re hopping on our trusty two-wheelers to continue the fight against this horrible disease benefiting the ALS-TDI. They’ve changed the format this year, and we’ll be attempting various distances. During the weekend of June 24-25, your team will be looping around Durham, NH, completing distances between 30 and 200 miles. And so, once again, we ask for your support:

1. Please navigate to www.team-epiphany.org and make a pledge. We hope to break our record on fundraising. It will also show you who’s on the team and what they’ve signed up for. Sponsor your favorite rider or the team at large. It’s all good!
2. You could join the team. No, I’m not kidding. There are many ways to participate, both in person and virtually. We’d love to swell our ranks — https://tst.als.net/the-ride/participation-options/. Not a cyclist? Doesn’t matter, you can participate virtually walking, running, or doing any kind of exercise.
3. Pray for us. We will be training heavily between now and then. We’d especially like your prayers for the safety of all riders and volunteers on the weekend of June 24-25.

ALS has hit this parish hard over the years, and we ride in honor of our fallen friends, Steve Lewis and Rick Marks. Yet, we know there are lots of pressing needs in the world so we thank you in advance for considering supporting us.

In the meantime, stay safe and well and have a blessed Eastertide.
~ Team Epiphany

Registration for our Parish Weekend Away is open, and the response has been strong. 

If you can't come for the full weekend, please come for the day on Saturday. You can arrive that morning and join us for coffee, workshops, lunch, a myriad of afternoon activities (including canoeing, nature walks, social time in the lodges, and more), the popular adult social hour, and dinner. Stay as long into the evening as you'd like: we'll have our legendary square dance, cards and games, and a campfire and sing-along. 

We have plenty of overnight space available in our "camper" category of accommodations. This means you will be placed in cabins which have bunk beds, electricity, heat, and bathrooms. Camper cabins are a little less cushy than lodge rooms (mainly in terms of the bunk beds) but are still a comfortable and only mildly-campy option. Camper cabins, because of their size, will have at least five people per cabin. Our retreat team will thoughtfully match up families or individuals to share these cabins. (Or, if you've got a large family, you might get your own!).

Standard accommodations are currently fully booked, with the possible exception of one female adult space. If you would like to be placed on the waitlist for standard accommodations, please reach out to Bryn — she is tirelessly working to make more space. 

For more information, please visit our website. Please register HERE.

We will have a celebratory potluck lunch at 11:30 am on Sunday, June 4 as we close our program-year together. A simple main dish will be provided. We ask that you bring a side or dessert to share. Simply drop it off in Hadley Hall before the 10:00 am service. We invite those with last names A-M: side dish; N-Z: dessert.

Join the Parish Choir, Choristers and guests for Choral Evensong and the Investiture of Choristers at Epiphany on Sunday, June 4 at 5:00 pm. This festive service on Trinity Sunday will conclude the 2022-23 choral season. Music for choir and soloists will include ‘The Second Service’ by William Byrd, ‘O Lord, Support Us’ by David Briggs, and ‘I saw the Lord’ by John Stainer. Watch future 3 Crowns announcements for a bit more detail on the music for this festive end-of-season service. 

Join Rev. Nick and our wardens, Nelia Newell and Darwin Keith-Lucas, as they host an end of the program year State of the Church conversation in Hadley Hall. We will have conversation and reflect upon the past program year and share a look toward the future as the vestry engages both the challenges and possibilities on the horizon. We invite you to gather before the summer begins in earnest.

All young adults at Epiphany (20s/30s/early 40s) are invited to a backyard hangout on June 11 from 4:00 - 6:00 pm in Cambridge. This will be a fun time to gather and connect with one another! RSVP to Rev. Janelle. 

Starting this October, Epiphany will launch Faith Circles — intentional, faith-based small groups that meet regularly to build deeper relationships with God and one another. A Faith Circle provides a safe, welcoming space for members to share their joys and struggles, to explore their faith and doubts, and to discover how and where God is present among us. If you are interested in joining a Faith Circle or would simply like to know more about them, please join us on Sunday, June 18 at 11:15 am in Hadley Hall.

Janelle would like to invite you into an important time in her life and the life of our parish as she gets ordained as a priest here at Parish of the Epiphany on June 23 at 6:00 pm. All are welcome!